Burris signs sharpshooter Smith

After watching the Blue Knights average just four three-pointers per game last season, which ranked 168th among all NJCAA Division I teams, Olney Central College men's basketball coach Mike Burris knew he needed to find a long-range threat for the 2013-14 campaign.

After watching the Blue Knights average just four three-pointers per game last season, which ranked 168th among all NJCAA Division I teams, Olney Central College men's basketball coach Mike Burris knew he needed to find a long-range threat for the 2013-14 campaign.

He accomplished that last week as 6-6, 190-pound lefty Carson Smith inked a letter of intent to play for the Blue Knights next season. Smith, who hails from Fort Mill, S.C., averaged 15.3 points and 6.7 rebounds last winter for Nation Ford High School.

"Carson is a long, left-handed kid who can really stretch the defense with his shot-making ability," Burris said. "He has a very good skill level as he can put the ball on the floor and make plays.

"We think as he gets stronger, he'll really take his game to another level. He is a legit 6-6 who plays on the perimeter. We didn't shoot the ball well last season from long range (28.8 percent – 189th), so obviously that was an area we wanted to improve upon in our recruiting."

Smith, a 2013 All-Region 3 selection, connected on 47 percent of his field-goal attempts as a senior and was 73 percent from the free-throw line. He shot 38 percent behind the arc.

"We're getting a high-character kid from a tremendous family," Burris said. "Carson is a young senior who won't turn 18 until July.

"He hit a major growth spurt during his high-school career. We met his brother at the signing and he was 6-8, so we think Carson still has some growing and filling out to do. He is a very driven young man who wants to play at the highest level possible after his time at OCC."

Smith chose OCC over Spartanburg (S.C.) Methodist College, who beat Vincennes University 100-93 in the third-place game of the 2013 NJCAA Division I National Tournament at Hutchinson, Kan., and was ranked number one in the final NJCAA regular-season poll. He is the second player from South Carolina to join the Blue Knights during the spring-signing period with the first being 6-7 forward Jamal Cummings.

"We're confident with Carson and Jamal that we're getting two skilled frontcourt guys who can shoot the basketball," Burris said. "We feel it's an excellent start thus far with two high-character kids who have division one ability."